An electric vehicle is one that is powered by stored electric energy originally obtained from an external power source, and uses one or more electric or traction motors for propulsion. Over the years, due in part to the environmental impact of tailpipe emissions from petroleum based vehicles and the cost of fuel, consumers have been opting for environmentally friendly electric or hybrid vehicles. Most electric vehicles are provided with storage units such as batteries and since batteries deplete their stored charge while being used, they are required to be re-charged at regular intervals.
There is a large variety of charging equipment available for re-charging electric vehicles. For example, an electric vehicle charging station is an element in an infrastructure that supplies electric energy for the recharging of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid electric-gasoline vehicles. As electric vehicles become more prevalent, more owners of public and private parking structures will want to provide charging stations for customers to use while parked in such parking structures.